$360,000 fine for Luv-a-Duck for false representations on packaging
Luv-a-Duck has been fined a total of $360,000 and been ordered to pay the ACCC’s $15,000 legal costs after the Federal Court found that it engaged in misleading or deceptive conduct in its marketing materials for the Good Food & Wine Show in Adelaide last year.
A 'priority area' for the ACCC
The court ruled that the claims ‘grown and grain fed in the spacious Victorian Wimmera Wheatlands’, and that its ducks were ‘range reared and grain fed’ were false representations, likely to mislead or deceive.
“In fact, the duck meat products that Luv-a-Duck sold or offered for sale were processed from ducks that did not spend any of their time outside of their barn,” the Australian Government said, announcing the finding.
“This penalty is a further warning to the poultry industry and businesses generally that consumers are entitled to trust that what is said on product packaging and other promotional product material is true and accurate,” ACCC Commissioner Sarah Court said.
“Traders who abuse the trust of Australian consumers may also find themselves exposed to similar enforcement action.”
“Credence claims which represent that a product possesses a premium attribute are a priority area for the ACCC, particularly those in the food and beverage industry with the potential to influence consumers and disadvantage competitors,” she added.
Luv-a-Duck has been ordered not to repeat the claims in its materials. It has also been ordered to publish corrective notices on its website and business premises and maintain a trade practices compliance program for three years.